barsad said:
All the walkons entered the Portal (cue up that Star Trek portal graphic)?
If that's the case then I really don't get how Portal recruiting works. A walkon at Cal who may have zero real minutes on a college floor thinks another school will make a scholarship offer with only high school stats to work with?
I personally don't think a 15-scholarship roster needs a practice squad of walkons, let them compete hard against each other.
Just speculating;
1. There is no cost to enter the Portal. A walk-on has no scholarship to lose.
2. The Portal does not indicate whether you had a scholarship. Coming from a P4 school, even with no PT, looks good on the resume.
3. The player may have grown or added strength since high school, making them more attractive to prospective schools.
4. The player may have chosen to walk-on at Cal vs a scholarship at D2 thinking they could earn PT, a scholarship and compete in the ACC, but now realize that is not going to happen.
5. The player may be looking for another situation where top academics and basketball are easier to balance.
The key is #1
As for the value of walk-ons for practice: 5 walk-ons lets you practice 2 games of 5 on 5 without anyone spending practice just watching from the sideline. It is better for conditioning, developing your 11-15 players (the guys who need the most game experience). They do not cost the program a scholarship, travel, or any other appreciable cost.
